Why do airlines do this?

Mr Wong said airlines codeshare their flights for four main reasons.

The first is to allow airlines to expand their route networks without using additional resources.

“An airline can offer passengers more destinations without having to operate its own aircraft or create a new route,” he said.

For example, under SIA’s expanded codeshare agreement with Air India, 11 Indian cities and 40 international destinations have been added to the network covered by the codeshare arrangement.

Codeshare is also “a cost-effective way to establish a presence in a market through a partner airline without having to use your own metal (aircraft), which can incur more costs,” Mr. Chua said.

The second reason is that airlines within an airline group, known as an alliance, often cooperate with each other, and code sharing is one way to do this.

SIA, for example, is part of the Star Alliance and operates codeshare flights with most of its 25 member airlines. Air India is a part of Star Alliance.

The third reason is that code sharing also helps airlines provide improved connectivity between flights by aligning the various schedules of different operators to provide smoother connections.

For example, if a passenger wants to travel from Singapore to Varanasi, India, he does not need to book a separate ticket on the SIA flight from Singapore to New Delhi and then from New Delhi to Varanasi on the Indian carrier.

Instead, under the expanded codeshare, they may soon book the entire trip under SIA and fly an Air India codeshare flight from New Delhi to Varanasi.

“A passenger can book the entire route with a single ticket, saving them the hassle of packing their bags and rechecking,” Mr Wong said.

Finally, code sharing is also a source of revenue for an airline, and they can generate revenue from routes they do not normally serve.

He added that a 50-50 revenue sharing arrangement is in place between partner airlines and customers from these code-sharing flights are split between the respective flights.

How do airlines decide who to codeshare with?

Mr. Chua said full-service carriers, unlike low-cost carriers, often codeshare with other full-service carriers and take into account aspects such as whether the carrier has a business or premium division and whether it has a frequent flyer program. example.

But Mr Wong said while service levels were one of the factors airlines consider when deciding which carrier to partner with, the key consideration was still whether the route networks were complementary.

“From an airline’s perspective, I would rather partner with someone who has routes that complement mine, without direct competition,” Mr. Wong said.

For example, SIA has a codeshare agreement with American carrier JetBlue Airways, which operates domestic flights in the United States and complements SIA’s network.

“SIA will fly to major US gateways and after that you hop on a JetBlue flight and fly the remaining distance,” he said.

“The idea for me is to offer my clients more destinations than I could normally manage on my own.”